Judge: Woman charged in ricin case stays in jail

A 70-year-old Wake Robin resident, accused by the FBI of making homemade ricin, will remain in jail until her criminal case is decided.

Betty Miller, who is accused of possessing an unregistered biological agent, appeared briefly in U.S. District Court on Wednesday, where Magistrate Judge John M. Conroy ordered she remain in jail.

Conroy reported a federal pretrial services officer had recommended Miller be detained for the time being. While Miller has no known criminal record, Conroy said documentation shows she has extensive mental health issues, include various hospitalizations and suicide attempts.

The FBI says Miller told investigators she was looking to “injure herself.” They said Miller also said she was testing the effectiveness of the poison by spreading it on food and drinks for other residents at the retirement complex.

Burlington lawyer Paul Volk, who signed on Wednesday to represent her, did not object to continued detention. The veteran defense lawyer told the court he will look for an appropriate placement for Miller. Conroy said he’s willing to hold another detention hearing if Volk files a written motion for reconsideration.

Miller has been detained at the Chittenden Regional Correctional Facility, the state’s only prison for women, through a contract the U.S. Marshals Service has with the state of Vermont.

The FBI arrested Miller last Thursday after she told investigators she produced the fatally toxic poison ricin in her kitchen, using castor beans from plants at the Shelburne retirement community.

Photo by Jason HollingerCastor bean plants, which are not beans at all, are commonly grown in the garden for their striking foliage as well as shade cover. Castor bean plants are stunning with their mammoth star-shaped leaves that can reach 3 feet in length.

The FBI said Miller drove herself to the UVM Medical Center after feeling ill. She told investigators and hospital employees that she attempted to poison other residents using homemade ricin, “which she placed in multiple servings of other residents’ food and beverages over a period of weeks,” Special Agent Mark Emmons said in his six-page affidavit.

At least one other person tested positive for the poison, records show.

Prosecutors have 30 days after filing a criminal complaint to seek a federal indictment from a grand jury.

Miller was making her second court appearance in federal court on Wednesday, walking with a wooden cane and escorted by deputy U.S. Marshals in and out of the courtroom.

At her initial hearing last Friday, Miller was represented temporarily by a federal public defender, but Conroy noted her assets made her ineligible for a lawyer at taxpayer expense.

Prosecutors asked Friday that Miller remain in custody, saying it could be dangerous to release her. First Assistant U.S. Attorney Eugenia A.P. Cowles said Miller’s behavior has been threatening to others and, if she were released, there was “reason to believe Ms. Miller could be moved to harm” someone.

In a written request to keep Miller in custody, Cowles wrote that “it appears even the most stringent of release conditions would not ensure Ms. Miller does not prepare further dangerous substances and/or attempt to harm those around her. Ms. Miller indicated in her interview with law enforcement both an intent to harm herself and a willingness to hurt others in the process of doing so. Absent further information about her mental state and present intentions, the court cannot create conditions adequate to protect Ms. Miller and those around her from harm.”

The investigation began after Miller went to the hospital early last week and told health care providers she had handled ricin. Her car was seized and taken to the Vermont State Police impound lot in Williston. A search of her residence found various pill bottles in her kitchen, including one marked “Ricin” that was half-full of a yellowish/white powder that tests later showed was ricin, Emmons said.

Investigators also found a laptop computer and a sheet of instructions for making ricin that appeared to have been printed from the internet.

Symptoms of ricin exposure vary, depending on whether it is inhaled or ingested. In this case, the homemade ricin was put in food and beverages. According to health officials, consuming ricin that way would result in vomiting, bloody diarrhea and possibly hallucinations and seizures, typically in less than 10 hours.

In an interview at the hospital, Miller said she became interested in plant-based poisons this past summer, FBI agent Emmons said. Miller described how she “harvested 30-40 castor beans from plants growing on the property at Wake Robin,” Emmons wrote; the highly decorative castor bean plant is often used in landscaping. Ricin is derived from castor beans.

He said Miller indicated she produced between 2 and 3 tablespoons of ricin on two occasions in the kitchen at her residence.

“Miller stated she decided to test the effectiveness of the ricin on other residents of Wake Robin,” the FBI agent wrote. “On at least three occasions, Miller exposed other residents to the ricin she had produced by placing it on food and/or beverages she expected them to ingest.

“Ms. Miller indicated her goal was to injure herself, but she wanted to test the effectiveness of the ricin on others.”

In her request to detain Miller, Cowles wrote that the Vermont Health Department had tested another Wake Robin resident, and the results “came back positive for the presence of ricin.”

Health Department spokesman Ben Truman confirmed that information but said the individual is not sick now; the exposure to ricin was apparently mild.

“We are now aware of one person who likely became ill with ricin poisoning, and we have been following up with that person,” he said. “No one is currently ill with ricin poisoning, and the danger for those who could have been exposed is over. Symptoms would have appeared by 24 hours after ingesting, and that time has passed.”

Prosecutors said evidence showed that Miller’s actions were carefully planned. “She researched plant-based toxins and prepared at least one extremely dangerous substance in the quiet comfort of her apartment. She relied on instructions from the internet and used, at least in part, natural substances to make her poison. By her own admission, she administered those substances to other residents in order to test their efficacy. While she has indicated her ultimate intent was to hurt herself, she demonstrated a callous disregard for the lives of others in the process,” Cowles wrote.

Throughout this incident, Wake Robin officials have not spoken to news reporters directly. In a written statement released Friday by its public relations firm, Wake Robin’s president and chief executive Patrick McKee described the chain of events and said state and federal investigators had left the complex.

“This was an isolated incident. The toxic substance was contained; no residents were evacuated. The affected apartment was closed off and thoroughly searched,” McKee said. “We have received assurances from the Vermont Department of Health and the FBI that no one’s health is at risk. The resident of the apartment in question is now involved with the criminal justice system and will not be returning to Wake Robin.”

The Associated Press reported that Miller was a longtime New Hampshire resident after marrying Dr. Joseph Miller in 1976. The couple had two children, including a son who lives in Vermont. After retiring, Joseph Miller served in the New Hampshire House of Representatives as a Democrat from Durham, the AP reported.

The Shelburne Fire and Police Departments and the State Hazardous Materials response team responded to the retirement complex on Tuesday, Nov. 28, after Wake Robin officials were alerted that Miller was being treated at the hospital, officials said.

Health department officials then worked with Wake Robin staff to direct cleaning and testing efforts. Environmental samples were taken from common areas where residents gather for meals and socializing.

“They all came back negative,” Truman said.

Miller’s living area will also be sanitized once the investigation is complete. “It’s a crime scene now,” Truman said.

Vermont’s health commissioner, Dr. Mark Levine, and other health department staff met with Wake Robin residents, staff and administrators at a large group meeting Nov. 28, Truman said. State health officials have been in touch with Wake Robin staff and administrators every day since.

In his written statement, McKee thanked responders, investigators, staff and residents. He also emphasized maintaining safety and privacy. The statement said Wake Robin officials will not be granting interviews on the matter nor will news media be allowed on the Wake Robin property.

Miller lived alone with her dog in unit 110 on the ground floor of a three-story building at Wake Robin. When asked about the pet, Wake Robin spokeswoman Charlotte Lyman said she was unable to comment.

According to the search warrant, in addition to her unit number and last name, Miller’s apartment door had a sign saying: “I wish I could be the person my dog thinks I am.”

One Response to "Judge: Woman charged in ricin case stays in jail"

Shelburne News requires that you use your full name, along with a valid email address. Your email address will not be published, shared, or used for promotional purposes. Please see our guidelines for posting for full details.